UK - Legal highs: The term "legal" 'does not equate to safe'

[CLICKHEREx]

http://www.itv.com/news/border/update/2014-07-16/legal-highs-the-term-legal-does-not-equate-to-safe/


2:30pm, Wed 16 Jul 2014 Legal highs on the rise in Cumbria

Legal highs: The term "legal" 'does not equate to safe'


One of the UK’s biggest drug and alcohol charities, CRI, has warned that the UK is ‘only scratching the surface’ and underestimating the serious public health challenge posed by ‘legal high’ misuse.

The charity has taken a leading role in treating and educating young people on the dangers of taking these substances, which it calls ‘strange molecules’.

It offers support to people via its services across the UK.



Its drop-in clinics are seeing a rise of people using synthetic cannabinoids like ‘Spice’, Mephedrone, MDMA, ketamine, Poke and Euphoria. Many of these substances are freely available in shops located on the high street, as well as online.

“We believe that the common term of ‘legal high’ is incredibly misleading; legal does not equate to safe, and some substances which were legal have now been classified.

"Some of these substances are highly potent and can be very risky, possibly up to 10,000 times stronger than the street drugs they emulate, with tiny amounts able to trigger extreme psychoactive responses."

– David Biddle, Chief Executive of CRI


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The writer is obviously ignorant of the fact that Mephedrone, MDMA, and Ketamine are not synthetic cannabinoids, but it's interesting to note that the experience at the cutting edge of increases contradicts what the UK govt.'s so called "think tank" (read "propaganda machine") has recently stated about young people turning their back on drugs.

[Jonny Deformed]

Mephedrone still avaliable "on the high street" ?

I find that rather difficult to believe

[Francois le Danque]

I assume those are brand names of spice. MDMA and ketamine are not legal on the 'high street' either. Pun intended?

[doxneed2c-me]

I haven't ever read about anything having a binding affinity which is 10,000 times higher than that of another chemical of similar structure. The biggest difference comes from big pharmaceutical companies and that would be fentanyl compared to other opiates. These are not legal highs. N-Benzyl derivatives of phenethylamines don't even bolster such differences in affinities. Fear mongering is one of the things that can lead to charges of Gangsterism. Who is to hold the media accountable? Also more people die from pharmaceuticals than legal highs. The reason so much media attention has been given is a kid will die and there is no money coming from a company to silence the complaint or death being an acceptable side effect or because people accept that people misuse these things and that the companies shouldn't have to try and create tamper proof pills and be required to create less addicting analogues.

[CLICKHEREx]

I haven't ever read about anything having a binding affinity which is 10,000 times higher than that of another chemical of similar structure. The biggest difference comes from big pharmaceutical companies and that would be fentanyl compared to other opiates. These are not legal highs. N-Benzyl derivatives of phenethylamines don't even bolster such differences in affinities. Fear mongering is one of the things that can lead to charges of Gangsterism. Who is to hold the media accountable? Also more people die from pharmaceuticals than legal highs. The reason so much media attention has been given is a kid will die and there is no money coming from a company to silence the complaint or death being an acceptable side effect or because people accept that people misuse these things and that the companies shouldn't have to try and create tamper proof pills and be required to create less addicting analogues.

It probably referred only to the NBOMe family.